Last week, on March 4, four of the five surviving Langley sisters, as they were known as growing up in the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s, took an important step together and received their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at Inspira Medical Center Mullica Hill, part of Inspira Health.
The Langley sisters grew up in Pittsgrove and Malaga, and all currently reside in Gloucester County or Salem County. They have always enjoyed spending time together, including getting together about once a month for lunch—until last February, that is—when the pandemic put a halt to this treasured family time, like it has to so many rituals for so many people.
It was Bernice, age 92, who started the conversation about getting vaccinated and came up with the idea of all getting their second doses at the same time. She thought it would be a great story for the family to tell.
The three other sisters—Edith Camp, age 96; Nora McDonald, age 86; and Rose Ramsey, age 84—agreed with the plan.
The sisters wore pins featuring photos their late sister, Doris Papiano, who would have been 90 this upcoming April, and their second oldest sister, Pauline Taylor, age 94, who wasn’t feeling up to getting her vaccine at this time.
Although they have continued to frequently talk on the phone, the sisters greatly missed seeing each another in person over the past year. The Langley sisters plan to wait a couple of weeks before they gather in person, masked-to-masked, giving their bodies time to reach the maximum protection provided by the vaccine.
What else are the sisters looking forward to? Long overdue appointments to get their hair done!
Together, the five sisters have more than 100 grandchildren, including great and great-great grandchildren! That’s a lot of long-overdue hugs to catch up on.
